ISLAMABAD, Aug 18:  As if out of a toyshop or like paintings placed in a showcase, bakers on the occasion of Eid are baking colourful varieties of cakes and pies brining joy to customers.

To make their products attractive to customers the sweets and cakes are displayed in various pyramid shapes and even decorated with silver foils. As far as creativity goes: sky is the limit for bakers.

“I see so many beautiful shapes and such great varieties of cakes that it is a mouth watering experience,” said Mahnoor Ali, at a bakery in the federal capital.        It is not only that the sales are high but the bakers are leaving no stone unturned.

After the lull of fasting days, sweet makers (halwai) and bakers making cakes are looking for a surge in sales starting from Saturday evening.

“We expect the sales to be more than 60 per cent higher than the normal days in these three days,” said the owner of a prominent sweets shop in Commercial market, Rawalpindi.

Though presenting sweets to friends and family members on Eid has been a tradition all over the country but the trend seems to be changing in the twin cities, as cakes and pastries have overtaken the traditional sweets especially on such occasions.

“Gulab Jamun is gulab jamun and barfi is barfi for years and years,” said Sara Hassan, a resident of Islamabad, “whereas there is flexibility in bakery products and every year we see new shapes and kinds of cakes.”

The average price of normal one pound cakes range between Rs360 and Rs380 in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, but the rates are higher to Rs400-Rs450 for one pound of fudge, muse or other varieties.

“There is another factor here compared to other cities as the bakery products of Rawalpindi and Islamabad are far better than what is available in many other places,” said Hammad Raza, a resident of Islamabad, who comes from Hyderabad Sindh.

“This seems to be the reason why more people are buying cakes compared to the traditional sweets,” he added.

Owner of a well-maintained bakery in Commercial market Rawalpindi said that the main reason for good quality bakery products in this region is that many people who either own bakeries or work in this trade have been to Europe and have been working in bakeries there.

“Therefore we have advanced knowledge of this sector, compared to bakers of many other parts of the country,” he added.

Though cream cakes had been the preferred choice on such occasions, including birthdays and marriages, but on a visit to any bakery in Islamabad or Rawalpindi one can see that many people are buying cream-less cakes too.